Computational Design of Two-Dimensional Boron-Containing Compounds as Efficient Metal-free Electrocatalysts toward Nitrogen Reduction Independent of Heteroatom Doping

A First Principle Study to Understand the Importance of Edge-exposed and Basal Plane Defective MoS2 Towards Nitrogen Reduction Reaction

Nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) as a promising approach to ammonia synthesis has received much attention in recent years. Molybdenum disulfides (MoS2), as one of the most potential candidates for NRR, are extensively investigated. However, the inert basal plane limits the application of MoS2. Herein, by using density functional theory (DFT) calculations, we constructed edge-exposed MoS2 and different kinds of basal plane defects, including anti-site, sulfur vacancy and pore defects, to systematically investigate their influence on the NRR performance. The thermodynamically calculated results revealed that the NRR on edge-exposed MoS2, anti-site defects, sulfur vacancy with three sulfur atoms missing (S3V) and porous defect (D) exhibit great catalytic activity with low limiting potentials. The calculated limiting potentials are -0.43 and -0.47 V at armchair and zigzag edge MoS2, -0.42 and -0.44 V at anti-site defects, -0.49 and -0.67 V at S3V and D. However, by inspecting the thermodynamic properties of the hydrogen evolution reaction, we proposed that the zigzag-end MoS2 and anti-site defects exhibit a better NRR selectivity compared to armchair-end MoS2, S3V and D. Electronic structure calculations reveals that the edge-exposed and basal plane defective MoS2 can improve the conductivity of the material by reducing the band gap. Donation-backdonation mechanism can effectively promote the activation of nitrogen molecule. Our results pave the way to understanding the defective effects of the MoS2 inertness plane for NRR and designing high-performance NRR catalysts.

Electrochemical Ammonia Synthesis at p-Block Active Sites Using Various Nitrogen Sources: Theoretical Insights

Electrochemical nitrogen conversion for ammonia (NH3) synthesis, driven by renewable electricity, offers a sustainable alternative to the traditional Haber-Bosch process. However, this conversion process remains limited by a low Faradaic efficiency (FE) and NH3 yield. Although transition metals have been widely studied as catalysts for NH3 synthesis through effective electron donation/back-donation mechanisms, there are challenges in electrochemical environments, including competitive hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and catalyst stability issues. In contrast, p-block elements show unique advantages in light of higher selectivity for nitrogen activation and chemical stability. The present article explores the potential of p-block element-based catalysts as active sites for NH3 synthesis, discussing their activation mechanisms, performance modulation strategies, and future research directions from a theoretical perspective.

Density Functional Theory Investigation on the Nitrogen Reduction Mechanism in Two-Dimensional Transition-Metal Boride with Ordered Metal Vacancies

The creation of ordered collective vacancies in experiment proves challenging within a two-dimensional lattice, resulting in a limited understanding of their impact on catalyst performance. Motivated by the successful experimental synthesis of monolayer molybdenum borides with precisely ordered metal vacancies [Zhou et al. Science 2021, 373, 801-805] through dealloying, the nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) in monolayer borides was systematically investigated to elucidate the influence of such ordered metal vacancies on catalytic reactions and the underlying mechanisms. The results reveal that the N-containing intermediates tend to dissociate, facilitating the NRR process with reduced UL. The emergence of ordered metal vacancies modulates the electronic properties of the catalyst and partially facilitates the decomposition of N-containing intermediates. However, the UL for NRR in Mo4/3B2 and W4/3B2 exhibits a significant increase. The compromised electrochemical performance is explained through the development of a simple electronic descriptor of the d-p band center (ΔdM-pB). Among these materials, Mo4/3Sc2/3B2 exhibits the most superior catalytic activity with a UL of -0.5 V and favorable NRR selectivity over the HER. Our results provide mechanistic insights into the role of ordered metal vacancies in transition-metal boride for the NRR and highlight a novel avenue toward the rational design of superior NRR catalysts.

Transition metals anchored on two-dimensional p-BN support with center-coordination scaling relationship descriptor for spontaneous visible-light-driven photocatalytic nitrogen reduction

Solar energy has the potential to revolutionize the production of ammonia, as it could provide a reliable and uninterrupted source of energy for the chemical reaction involved. However, improving the catalytic performance of catalysts often leads to a reduction in their band gaps, which results in insufficient photogenerated electron potential to realize the nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR), and thus the development of NRR efficient photocatalysts remains a great challenge. Herein, based on the density functional theory (DFT), a series of single-atom photocatalysts with transition metals (TMs) doped on porous boron nitride (p-BN) nanosheet are proposed for NRR. Among them, Re-B3@p-BN could effectively catalyze gas-phase N2 through the corresponding pathways with limiting potentials of 0.31 V. Meanwhile, it exhibits excellent light absorption efficiency under illumination and could spontaneously catalyse nitrogen fixation reactions due to the suitable forbidden band and high photogenerated electron potential. Moreover, a linear relationship descriptor based on the intrinsic properties has been established, using a machine learning approach by considering the combined effects of the central metal atom and the coordination atoms. This descriptor could help accelerate the development of rational and improved 2D NRR photocatalysts with high catalytic activity and high selectivity.

Optimizing the NRR activity of single and double boron atom catalysts using a suitable support: a first principles investigation

Designing cost effective transition-metal free electrocatalysts for nitrogen fixation under ambient conditions is highly appealing from an industrial point of view. Using density functional theory calculations in combination with the computational hydrogen electrode model, we investigate the N2 activation and reduction activity of ten different model catalysts obtained by supporting single and double boron atoms on five different substrates (viz. GaN, graphene, graphyne, MoS2 and g-C3N4). Our results demonstrate that the single/double boron atom catalysts bind favourably on these substrates, leading to a considerable change in the electronic structure of these materials. The N2 binding and activation results reveal that the substrate plays an important role by promoting the charge transfer from the single/double boron atom catalysts to the antibonding orbitals of *N2 to form strong B-N bonds and subsequently activate the inert NN bond. Double boron atom catalysts supported on graphene, MoS2 and g-C3N4 reveal very high binding energies of -2.38, -2.11 and -1.71 eV respectively, whereas single boron atom catalysts supported on graphene and g-C3N4 monolayers bind N2 with very high binding energies of -1.45 and -2.38 eV, respectively. The N2 binding on these catalysts is further explained by means of orbital projected density of states plots which reflect greater overlap between the N2 and B states for the catalysts, which bind N2 strongly. The simulated reaction pathways reveal that the single and double boron atom catalysts supported on g-C3N4 exhibit excellent catalytic activity with very low limiting potentials of -0.67 and -0.36 V, respectively, while simultaneously suppressing the HER. Thus, the current work provides important insights to advance the design of transition-metal free catalysts for electrochemical nitrogen fixation from an electronic structure point of view.

"Capture-Backdonation-Recapture" Mechanism for Promoting N2 Reduction by Heteronuclear Metal-Free Double-Atom Catalysts

Facing the increasingly serious energy and environmental crisis, the development of heteronuclear metal-free double-atom catalysts is a potential strategy to realize efficient catalytic nitrogen reduction with low energy consumption and no pollution because it could combine the advantages of flexible active sites in double-atom catalysts while also being pollution-free and have high Faraday efficiency in metal-free catalysts simultaneously. However, according to the existing mechanism, the finite orbits of other nonmetallic atoms, except the boron atom, reduce the possibility of metal-free catalysis and hinder the development of heteronuclear metal-free double-atom catalysts. Herein, we propose a new "capture-backdonation-recapture" mechanism, which skillfully uses the electron capture-backdonation-recapture between boron, the substrate, and other nonmetallic elements to solve the above problems. Based on this mechanism, by means of the first-principle calculations, the material structure, adsorption energy, catalytic activity, and selectivity of 36 catalysts are systematically investigated to evaluate their catalytic performance. B-Si@BP1 and B-Si@BP3 are selected for their good catalytic performance and low limiting potentials of -0.14 and -0.10 V, respectively. Meanwhile, the "capture-backdonation-recapture" mechanism is also verified by analyzing the results of adsorption energy and electron transfer. Our work broadens the ideas and lays the theoretical foundation for the development of heteronuclear metal-free double-atom catalysts in the future.

Novel Design Strategy of High Activity Electrocatalysts toward Nitrogen Reduction Reaction via Boron-Transition-Metal Hybrid Double-Atom Catalysts

Electrocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) is a promising method for sustainable production of NH₃, which provides an alternative to the traditional Haber-Bosch process. However, the poor Faraday efficiency caused by N≡N triple bond activation and competitive hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) have seriously hindered the application of NRR. In this work, a novel strategy to promote NRR through boron-transition-metal (TM) hybrid double-atom catalysts (HDACs) has been proposed. The excellent catalytic activity of HDACs is attributed to a significant difference of valence electron distribution between boron and TMs, which could better activate N≡N bonds and promote the conversion of NH₂ to NH₃ compared with boron or metal single-atom catalysts and traditional double-atom catalysts (DACs). Hence, by means of DFT computations, the stability, activity, and selectivity of 29 HDACs are systematically investigated to evaluate their catalytic performance. B-Ti@g-CN and B-Ta@g-CN are screened as excellent nitrogen-fixing catalysts with particularly low limiting potentials of 0.13 and 0.11 V for NRR and rather high potentials of 0.54 and 0.82 V for HER, respectively. This work provides a new idea for the rational design of efficient nitrogen-fixing catalysts and could also be widely used in other catalytic reactions.

p-Block element-doped silicon nanowires for nitrogen reduction reaction: a DFT study

Photocatalytic nitrogen reduction reaction (NRR) is a promising, green route to chemically reducing N₂ into NH₃ under ambient conditions, correlating to the N₂ fixation process of nitrogenase enzymes. To achieve high-yield NRR with sunlight as the driving force, high-performance photocatalysts are essential. One-dimensional silicon nanowires (1D SiNWs) are a great photoelectric candidate, but inactive for NRR due to their inability to capture N₂. In this study, we proposed SiNWs doped by p-block elements (B, C, P) to tune the affinity to N₂ and demonstrated that two-coordinated boron (B_2C) offers an ultra-low overpotential (η) of 0.34 V to catalyze full NRR, which is even much lower than that of flat benchmark Ru(0001) catalysts (η = 0.92 V). Moreover, aspects including suppressed hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), high-spin ground state of the B_2C site, and decreased band gap after B-doping ensure the high selectivity and photocatalytic activity. Finally, this work not only shows the potential use of metal-free p-block element-based catalysts, but also would facilitate the development of 1D nanomaterials towards efficient reduction of N₂ into NH₃.